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Hotel/Motel/Resort Laundry: Charles Loelius, The Pierre New York, New York, N.Y.

Abraham Lincoln once said, “You can’t do business from an empty wagon.” Nothing has a greater impact on a laundry’s sales, service, operation, and reputation than an inadequate circulating linen inventory.

The lack of a sufficient amount of linen in circulation necessitates operating the plant longer hours than would otherwise be necessary. Labor, maintenance and utility costs increase, while both efficiency and morale plummet. Operating costs increase without the benefit of added revenue.

Laundering the linen more frequently than would otherwise be necessary shortens its life, resulting in higher depletion and additional replenishment cost.

Equally important, insufficient circulating linen results in decreased fill rates. The inability to provide complete orders negatively impacts both revenue and customer confidence.

The first step in managing circulating linen inventory is to recognize that linen loss will occur. The next step is to ascertain where this loss is prone to occur, and develop policies and programs to prevent unnecessary depletion.

How linen is processed, distributed, utilized, returned and monitored will have a direct bearing on both linen loss and replenishment costs.

Planned losses, such as discards and rag-outs, are the result of quality control programs. Planned depletion, along with a corresponding linen replenishment program, is necessary to maintain a viable circulating linen inventory.

At my hotel, I budget annual rooms linen replacement cost at $2.50 per occupied room; annual food-and-beverage linen replacement cost is budgeted at 20 cents per cover.

Consequently, I am able to completely turn over the circulating linen inventory every three years.

There are two types of linen depletion: actual and artificial. Actual loss represents a permanent depletion in circulating linen (the linen is not retrievable). This loss is the result of discard, abuse and theft, either deliberate or inadvertent. Artificial loss represents linen that, while not accessible to circulating inventory, is still retrievable. This loss is caused by linen being overstocked at the end-user location, which results in an under-utilized inventory.

In linen rental operations, overstocking at the customer not only renders linen inaccessible, it precludes generating additional rental revenue via “turning” the linen.

Conducting physical inventories on a regular basis will provide the information needed to determine if the amount of linen in circulation is sufficient for the operation. Physical inventories also help in the planning of future purchases, and are essential in determining linen loss.

Due to storage limitations typical at a Manhattan hotel, it is necessary to employ the practice of just-in-time ordering. Ordering less linen more often reduces the space needed for storage, but increases the reliance on accurate physical inventories. Like the carpenter’s credo of “measure twice cut once,” proper linen procurement relies on conducting exact physical inventories.

Conducting precise physical inventories will also serve as the basis for determining unexplained linen loss. This loss can be determined through this formula: Prior inventory – discards + linen injections – current inventory = unexplained loss.

Conducting physical inventories at the customer’s premises is a daunting task, but is necessary to properly gauge both linen loss and linen utilization. Complete inventories should be conducted at least annually. Salient information can also be gleaned from “informal” inventories, shelf counts, and linen abuse “spot checks” that can be conducted as part of sales, service, and goodwill calls.

Linen loss and abuse charges, as well as linen utilization fees, when implemented and enforced, can aid in reducing both actual and artificial linen losses.

There is the caveat, however, that enforcing these type charges, even if contractually stipulated, may result in strained relations with the customer.

Regardless of the laundry operation type, it is crucial to involve, educate and monitor the end-users, in properly controlling the linen at their disposal.

Chemicals Supply: Philip L. Bodner, Metro-Chem, Kearny, N.J.

One of the main challenges in purchasing new textiles is taking extra care to know exactly what it is you are being sold.

We are in a time of exciting new textiles and innovative, high-performance, high-quality fabrics, yet we are also in an era of low-cost outsourcing from places around the globe offering seemingly value-priced purchasing options that sometimes don’t perform to our standards and expectations.

Processing of “commercial level” quality textiles or an innovative new fabric is usually easy enough to accomplish. As always, make your purchasing considerations based on colors, sizes and fabric types. When placing your first order with a vendor, make sure to ask for a printed copy of the manufacturer’s laundering and processing recommendations.

Get all the info that’s available and then the correct laundering and finishing of these textiles becomes a matter of putting the manufacturer’s recommendations together with you and your trusted vendor’s experience to arrive at the correct processing routines. When handled properly, the mid- to higher-quality imported or domestic textile will stay in usable condition longer and will offer a good return on investment through its extended service life.

If you are buying large quantities of any textiles, or if you’re buying something new to your operation (or even trying to get a bargain), do two things to save yourself some potential grief. First, ask your distributor salesperson to let you speak to some customers who have purchased the same goods to get direct feedback on performance. Secondly, have an adequate quantity of sample products sent in advance to test-wash and finish to get a leg up on what to expect.

As far as how much linen inventory is enough, answers vary for each operation’s actual needs. One thing is sure: the same budgetary constraints we suffer today, the ones that send people bargain shopping, also tend to lead to inadequate par levels. This lack of linen—I call it “LoL”—can often leave a trail of major inefficiencies cascading down the line.

Both the planned and un-planned consequences of LoL are no laughing matter when they start costing you money. It starts the clock ticking on an investment that will surely wear out before it should. It’s just like wearing the same pair of shoes every day instead of alternating among a few pairs throughout the week. At the end of some shortened period of time, you will be reordering new replacement linens and those pesky invoices will start to play tag with accounts payable.

LoL also puts stress on everyone involved in your laundry or the laundry that provides your linen service. This can lead to processing shortcuts that can affect quality in laundering and finishing because nobody can take the time to do it right. Today’s soil is also today’s or tomorrow’s clean linens, so just get out of the way! We see this “hurry and scurry” approach played out over and over in many laundry operations.

LoL flies in the face of “green” initiatives. It’s carbon-intensive to burn all of that diesel fuel the linen service uses to drive back and forth seven days a week with the linen you absolutely have to have now. By adding par, you solve this, and may even put yourself in a better negotiating position when the next service contract is written. Your provider now only has to come rolling out to see your loading dock four times a week, which is a win-win situation for all except the oil companies.

Finally, it’s the unplanned consequences always lurking around that can and will affect you in not-so-pleasant ways. You have probably experienced some of these seat-clenching moments already.

Do you agree that laundry equipment never breaks, the delivery trucks always start in winter, it never snows, and everyone else’s workers always show up in force when needed just like yours do? If you don’t, then you’re a realist, and having that one or two extra par on hand in case of emergency is your buffer when reality hits. This option sure beats watching your employees stand around waiting for miracle linen to appear. Besides, the guests usually don’t stay humorous for long without clean sheets.

Having more par available keeps the goods looking better and lasting longer. More par means less stress and more time to get things done right. More par is more green. More par gives you breathing room when the best plans go awry. And we can all agree that having one less thing to worry about is always a good thing.

CHICAGO — For Toledo’s NuCentury Textile Services, 2012 began under horrible circumstances.

Published reports indicate that, on Jan. 3 last year, an employee failed to turn off and lock a folder before servicing it. His clothes got caught in the machine, and his hand and forearm were injured. He later died from complications while recovering at home.

The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) cited NuCentury for several alleged safety violations and fined it $40,000. NuCentury hired a safety consultant and took other steps to improve its safety program, prompting OSHA to lower the fine to $19,600.

Despite best efforts, on-the-job accidents do occur in and around textile service facilities, and employees are injured or, on rare occasions, even killed.

There are resources available to  help an operator ensure his plant is being run safely, and among them is SafeTRSA, a program offered by the Textile Rental Services Association (TRSA).

It provides safety training materials to TRSA members and measures the industry’s progress in implementing enhanced practices to reduce and eliminate occupational injuries and illnesses in plants and depots, according to Ken Koepper, director of marketing and public relations for the association.

Success is quantified when TRSA administers its annual survey of its members’ occupational injury and illness data, he explains. “Such tracking over the past several years has prompted TRSA’s creation of industry-specific initiatives and resources to focus on the industry’s highest risk areas and those cited most frequently by OSHA.”

This has resulted in TRSA members’ adoption of proven policies and procedures for maintaining equipment (lockout/tagout), handling soiled linen (especially bloodborne pathogens) and working in confined spaces, Koepper says.

“The networking and information-sharing between members on such matters has generated new programming for educational institutes and conferences as well as publications, online resources, videos and more.”

Membership-wide safety statistics enable TRSA companies to easily compare their improvements to the industry norm and foster further gains.

Data from 2011, reported in 2012, will be released by TRSA shortly.

“Our survey from 2010 covered 59 textile services companies operating 720 processing facilities and depots,” Koepper says. “It showed that in the prior four years, the industry experienced across-the-board reductions in its injury and illness rates. TRSA calculates separate TRIR and DART rates for plants and depots.

“The new report will reflect further reductions. Also, participation in the survey increased in 2012, to 66 companies operating 792 facilities.”

TRIR stands for Total Recordable Incidence Rate. DART is short for Day Aways, Restricted or Transferred.

From 2006 to 2010, TRSA respondents reduced their total number of recordable injuries and illnesses per 100 employees (TRIR Rate) from 9.5 to 5.5, Koepper says. Injuries and illnesses per 100 employees resulting in days away from work, job restrictions and/or job transfers (DART Rate) dropped from 5.8 to 3.9.

TRSA also calculates separate figures for the industrial and linen segments. The new report will cross-reference these with the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) industry-wide figures, according to Koepper.

In 2011, at TRSA’s request, for the first time in roughly a decade, BLS published separate TRIR and DART rates for textile services (industrial and linen) as opposed to the agency’s prior practice of only consolidating them with all other types of commercial laundry (mostly dry cleaning and coin laundry).

Koepper says TRSA requested this reporting enhancement as a means for tracking future industry-wide improvements.

“Although TRSA and BLS results show that the industry is still short of achieving its ultimate objective—eliminating occupational injuries and illnesses in its facilities—these reports also demonstrate dramatic progress towards achieving that goal,” he says.

TRSA hosted a Safety Summit last year that focused on enhancing safety cultures across the industry.

“It had been four years since the industry conducted a single-subject meeting on safety,” Koepper says. “Although it was a seminar topic in conferences and educational institutes, too much time had passed since an event dedicated to the subject was held.”

Audiences for prior safety-focused meetings had consisted mostly of hands-on safety professionals. The Summit concept involved the highest levels of textile services management, elevating TRSA’s involvement in guiding operators in increasing the prominence of safety in their corporate cultures.

“The Summit went beyond day-to-day injury prevention tactics,” Koepper says. “It examined options the industry could exercise collectively to hire the proper expertise, immediately assess the greatest risks and devise near-term action plans for developing standards and communicating them to operators.”

The TRSA Safety Committee is working on those plans, and a second Safety Summit has been scheduled for May 22 in Indianapolis.

Koepper says he’s seen the industry make great strides in automation in recent decades.

Automated material handling reduces the “manual labor requirement for this purpose. Soil bags are hoisted and carried on rails automatically to washers. Computing drives clean-side garment sorting. To prevent hazardous discharge of energy, smart systems are limiting access to areas where electricity must be controlled to ensure machines don’t start unexpectedly.”

But automation isn’t likely to ever completely eliminate all the different types of human movement required to provide textile services.

“Route service, for example, will always involve an individual walking from a truck to a customer’s receiving area,” Koepper says. “To reduce exposure, the industry has increased its proficiency in safer lifting, carrying and pushing. More individuals are cross-trained to perform different jobs in the course of a day to curtail redundant motion.”

TRSA is guiding members in their quest to convince every employee that safety comes first and productivity second.

While it is still a huge job to get to zero incidents in an industry so heavily dependent on athleticism and individual workers’ judgment, Koepper says TRSA is pleased with the gains of recent years and believes more improvement lies ahead.  

WILMINGTON, Mass. — Working in a nursing home or residential care facility can be particularly hazardous to your health, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. OSHA says such employees miss work at a rate that is 2.3 times higher than all other private industry businesses combined, largely related to accidental slips, trips and falls.

OSHA has targeted these healthcare facilities in a national emphasis program (NEP), meaning it will now be inspecting such businesses, specifically, for safety violations over the next three years. And it will be keeping tabs on all types of businesses for slips, trips and falls because data shows such accidents cause 15% of all accidental deaths in North America—second only to car accidents.

“Since dirty and wet walking surfaces are often cited as causes of preventable accidents, safety-minded businesses often include commercial 'floor mat systems' to help prevent slips and falls,” says Adam Soreff, director of marketing for UniFirst, a company that provides commercial floor mat and uniform services.

The most effective floor mat systems, according to Soreff, consist of placing scraper mats with raised rubber cleats outside entranceways to remove heavy dirt and moisture first, and then placing carpet-topped walk-off mats inside entrances to trap any residual dirt and moisture. Placing walk-off mats in all heavy traffic areas inside helps contain soiling and moisture even further.

And there are special mats available, such as “wet area” mats that funnel spilled liquids beneath their surfaces (recommended near areas such as sinks and drinking fountains) and anti-fatigue mats that can reduce muscle and joint fatigue (helpful wherever employees stand for long periods of time).

It's imperative that businesses look for industrial-grade mats specifically constructed to lie flat and stay put, Soreff adds. UniFirst recommends mats certified as “high traction” by the National Floor Safety Institute (NFSI).

Even the highest quality floor mats must be professionally cleaned, maintained and inspected on a regular basis to remain clean and fully functional. “Vacuuming alone won't do it, and neither will a scrub brush,” Soreff says. “You've got to get deep down into rubber crevices and fiber pilings to hygienically clean floor mats.”

It's surprising that many facility managers are unaware that there are companies like UniFirst that can bundle commercial floor mat systems with other business services, he adds.

ATLANTA — Persons planning to attend the Clean Show in New Orleans next summer may now make reservations at the 20 discounted hotels offered in the event’s housing package, says show manager Riddle & Associates.

The show’s five sponsoring trade associations have selected their headquarter hotels for those who wish to stay in a hotel primarily occupied by attendees and exhibitors in their industry segment:

• Association for Linen Management — Omni Royal Orleans
• Coin Laundry Association — Astor Crowne Plaza
• Drycleaning & Laundry Institute — Royal Sonesta
• Textile Care Allied Trades Association — Marriott Convention Center
• Textile Rental Services Association — Marriott New Orleans

Other hotels available in Clean’s housing package are the Best Western Plus St. Christopher, Chateau LeMoyne French Quarter, Courtyard by Marriott Convention Center, Hampton Inn Convention Center, Hilton Riverside, Holiday Inn French Quarter, Courtyard by Marriott Downtown/Iberville, Loews New Orleans Hotel, Monteleone, Ritz-Carlton New Orleans, Sheraton New Orleans, Springhill Suites Convention Center, W New Orleans, Westin, and the Windsor Court.

Complimentary shuttle buses to and from the Morial Convention Center will be provided at all association headquarter hotels and within two blocks of all other Clean 2013 official hotels for participants in the June 20-22, 2013, event.

Visit cleanshow.com to view available hotels and make reservations; click on the “Registration & Housing Information” button.

For more information about Clean 2013, visit the show’s website or contact Riddle & Associates, 404-876-1988, info@cleanshow.com.

CINCINNATI — In recognition of National Safety Month, Cintas Corp., a provider of first aid and safety products, has released its top tips for businesses impacted by the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) requirements for chemical classification and labeling. The new system will require millions of businesses and employees nationwide to be retrained on hazard communication.

“Hazardous-chemical information needs to be communicated to any employee who is exposed to or works with chemicals—even bleach,” says John Amann, vice president, First Aid & Safety, Cintas. “With GHS affecting over 5 million businesses, it is important that all employees are trained and understand the upcoming changes to chemical safety so businesses can keep workers safe and maintain OSHA compliance.”

The top tips for transitioning to GHS include:

UPDATE YOUR WRITTEN SAFETY PROGRAM

Anytime a safety standard is created or updated, written programs must be changed to include guidelines for complying with the regulation. Update your written program to incorporate GHS in all of your current hazard communication protocols.

BEGIN TRAINING NOW

The adoption of GHS has the potential to prevent nearly 600 injuries and illnesses annually, according to the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA). To be proactive in preventing accidents, employees must be properly trained on new chemical labeling and Safety Data Sheet (SDS) formats. Businesses that make an effort to train well before the deadline will have knowledgeable, prepared employees, thereby limiting injuries, medical costs and potential OSHA fines, Cintas says.

ENSURE WORKERS UNDERSTAND NEW PICTOGRAMS

Nine new pictograms for chemical labels will provide visual warnings for carcinogens, skin or eye irritants, flammable products and more. Clarify what each pictogram represents and demonstrate the types of personal protective equipment (PPE) workers should wear for different hazards.

FAMILIARIZE EMPLOYEES WITH NEW LABELS

New labels will now have a signal word, the product identifier, supplier identification, and hazard and precautionary statements. These detailed labels include critical warnings, Cintas advises, so it is important to teach employees to thoroughly read them before using the chemical.

EXPLAIN NEW SAFETY DATA SHEETS (SDS) FORMATS

Safety Data Sheets (SDS), formally Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS), are informational guides for determining chemical handling and storage, necessary PPE and exposure action plans. These will now follow a standardized format and contain more extensive chemical information. Reference OSHA to understand the new layout, and keep your SDS binders accessible so employees can refer to them anytime.

ENGAGE EMPLOYEES USING BLENDED TRAINING FORMATS

When used in conjunction, instructor-led, DVD and online training engage all learning types. Lessons should combine visual and auditory instruction with group activities and handouts to encourage retention of GHS material, Cintas recommends.

KEEP TRAINING RECORDS ON FILE

To prevent OSHA fines, it is necessary to document all of the training conducted within your facility. Have employees sign training logs after they have completed GHS training and demonstrated an understanding of the concepts.

“Because hazardous materials present severe risks to workers, complying with GHS guidelines is essential for maintaining a safe work environment,” adds Amann. “Businesses that begin preparing now will find the transition much easier than workplaces that wait until the last minute.”

Cintas is offering a free on-site, no obligation consultation to determine what aspects of current hazard communication programs a given business needs to update. More information is available by calling 877-973-2811.

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is “struggling” with incentive programs that recognize employers for exemplary efforts in preventing workplace injuries and illnesses, Richard E. Fairfax, deputy assistant U.S. labor secretary, told an audience of Textile Rental Services Association (TRSA) members on Tuesday.

Fairfax, speaking to TRSA’s Leadership & Legislative Conference, said limited resources have prevented OSHA from expanding these efforts after they grew significantly in recent years, particularly during President George W. Bush’s administration.

In more recent years, OSHA has concentrated on evaluating their effectiveness. “I think the world of the program,” Fairfax says of the Voluntary Protection Program (VPP), but he indicated that such endeavors might need better quality control.

The VPP, Safety & Health Achievement and Recognition Program (SHARP) and other honors awarded to employers, including many in the textile service industry, are under evaluation by an OSHA team Fairfax appointed last summer. “I told them to take as long as they want, to do a top-to-bottom review,” he says.

In the meantime, he urged employers to take advantage of other compliance assistance programs, such as the free OSHA consultation service for companies with 250 workers or less. Agency personnel who visit a business and find violations don’t notify the federal office of these unless the location’s management refuses to fix them. This program saw a budget increase in 2011, Fairfax notes. Each OSHA area office employs a compliance assistance specialist who performs these inspections.

“Our senior and best compliance officers have moved into those positions,” he explains. “They’re not allowed to do anything in enforcement.” They exist for training and outreach and usually “all it takes is a phone call to the office” to involve them in a voluntary compliance effort.

Fairfax also pointed out that the agency hopes to increase its use of private-sector safety pros to help with other employers’ preventive efforts. In this special government employee (SGE) program, such an individual receives three days of free OSHA training, and then participates annually as a member of an OSHA team evaluating other companies’ safety procedures. The agency wants to increase the number of SGEs who can help permanent OSHA staff work with employers in preventive efforts.

Fairfax’s presentation included numerous statistics on the agency’s enforcement activities in 2011, such as a leveling of inspection totals from the prior year (down about 300 to 40,600) and a 6,000 decline in violations to 91,000. The textile services business had no willful or repeat violations, a rarity among industries, Fairfax says.

Those findings are consistent with TRSA’s SafeTRSA education and benchmarking program, which has logged results of improved safety practices among member companies during the past five years:

• 42% reduction in total recordable injuries and illnesses rate (TRIR)
• One-third reduction in DART Rate (days away from work, restrictions or transfers)
• Most recent annual improvement of 5% in TRIR and 2.5% in DART rate

HYANNIS, Mass. — Cape Cod Commercial Linen Service (CCCLS) has announced that it will be acquiring another local property, with plans to create a state-of-the-art commercial laundry facility that will open in April.

The Hyannis-based commercial laundry company that has been servicing Cape Cod hotels, resorts, restaurants and other commercial businesses for more than 25 years will be closing its two current facilities and merging them into the nearly 30,000-square-foot building formerly occupied by a wholesale plumbing supply company.

The Cape Cod Commission approved the project in early January.

A key addition to the new facility is a Milnor tunnel system that will reduce the laundry’s energy and water consumption by nearly 50%, the company says. This will make CCCLS a certified “green” laundry under the Laundry Environmental Stewardship Program (LaundryESP), which prides itself on reducing the consumption of energy and by-waste production.

Also added will be a Chicago® Powerhouse ironer.

Closure of CCCLS’ two locations will be gradual, enabling the company to provide uninterrupted customer service.

A comprehensive development plan has been established. CCCLS is encouraging its customers to contact the business for complete details.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — An investigation is under way to determine how a Cintas Corp. maintenance technician was killed early Friday morning when the industrial dryer he was servicing started.

Kevin Lee Burgess, 55, died from blunt-force trauma and was pronounced dead at the scene, according to local authorities. Police are conducting a death investigation but believe the incident that occurred sometime before 4:45 a.m. Friday was an accident, according to local media reports.

“Cintas is devastated to have learned about the accident that took the life of one of our employee-partners at our uniform rental facility in Louisville overnight,” the company says in a prepared statement. “Our deepest heartfelt sympathy is extended to his family.

“The safety and security of our employee-partners is a priority at Cintas, and we are shaken by this news. The company remains focused on providing support to the family and his co-workers at the facility. A thorough investigation has begun to determine the cause of this accident.”

In March 2007, a Cintas worker was killed when he fell into an industrial dryer at the company’s Tulsa, Okla., plant. The death sparked a federal investigation of Cintas and prompted U.S. lawmakers to introduce laws for even greater federal oversight of worksite safety. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) later fined Cintas for safety violations at the Tulsa plant and five other locations.

Cintas reached an agreement with OSHA pertaining to all automated and semi-automated laundry facilities under OSHA’s federal jurisdiction in December 2008, and agreed to pay $2.76 million in fines.

The Textile Rental Services Association (TRSA) says this latest incident “comes amid steady improvements in the industry’s overall safety record as reflected in TRSA’s latest Safety Survey, which indicated that total recordable injuries and illnesses (TRIR) dropped by 5% from 2009-10.”

“This incident occurred despite substantial improvements and our industry’s investment in safety,” TRSA CEO Joseph Ricci says in an association blog entry. “We should respond by strengthening the industry’s resolve to continue our focus on developing safety cultures and striving for zero tolerance.”

Cintas has worked closely with TRSA to help educate industry colleagues on best practices for accident/illness prevention, according to the association, sponsoring tours of its semi-automated wash aisle facilities (one is scheduled at the company’s Lawrenceville, Ga., plant next week) and participating in various panel discussions on safety issues.

ANDOVER, Mass. — The Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently cited Royal Institutional Services Inc., a commercial laundry in Somerville, Mass., for four alleged violations of workplace safety standards following a worker injury.

OSHA opened its inspection after learning that a mechanic sustained a crushing hand injury on Jan. 26 while lubricating the chain of an ironer that was running.

The laundry, which is owned by Angelica Corp., faces a total of $49,935 in proposed fines.

OSHA’s inspection found that the machine had not first been de-energized and had its power source locked out before maintenance was performed, as required by the agency’s hazardous energy control or “lockout/tagout” standard.

OSHA cited Royal Institutional Services for one repeat violation with a fine of $35,000 for the lack of energy-control procedures; two serious violations with $14,000 in fines for the lack of effective training and evaluation; and one other-than-serious violation with a fine of $935 for a lack of documented lockout procedures for a machine.

Upon receiving the citations and proposed penalties, Royal Institutional Services had 15 business days to comply, meet with OSHA or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

This Association for Linen Management webinar will present a comprehensive look at the MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheets) requirements in laundries and the changes proposed by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Webinar time is 2 p.m. Eastern, 1 p.m. Central, noon Mountain, 11 a.m. Pacific.

ALM members pay $49.95 per connection; nonmembers pay $75 per connection. Cutoff for ordering is 24 hours prior to webinar.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Recordable injuries and illnesses in Textile Rental Service Association of America (TRSA) member workplaces dropped 17% from 2008 to 2009, according to the annual TRSA Textile Services Industry Safety Report just released.

WASHINGTON — The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) has recently taken more action to impose fines and enforce regulations concerning combustible dust and lint in laundry facilities.

This extra attention has translated into a regulatory push for higher standards and the potential for significant fines for lack of compliance.